• MarTech Today
  • Sections
    • Ads
    • Marketing
    • Content
    • Sales
    • Analytics
    • Management
    • Resources
    • More
    • Home
  • MarTech Today
  • Ads
  • Marketing
  • Content
  • Sales
  • Analytics
  • Mgmt
  • Resources
  • More
  • Events
  • SUBSCRIBE

MarTech Today

MarTech Today
  • Ads
  • Marketing
  • Content
  • Sales
  • Analytics
  • Management
  • Resources
  • More
  • Events
  • Newsletters
  • Home
Martech: Content

Online car retailer Vroom launches first VR-based auto showroom

Initially intended for several of the company’s physical locations, the virtual showroom will soon become a downloadable app with an online backend.

Barry Levine on August 4, 2016 at 4:47 pm
  • More
A test drive in Vroom's VR car showroom

A test drive in Vroom’s VR car showroom

The shop-in-your-pajamas revolution is hitting a new milestone, with the launch of the first virtual reality car showroom.

This week, online pre-owned car retailer Vroom announced its new VR-based car showroom, which will be made available next Friday at its physical facilities in Houston and Dallas, and at a pop-up location in Phoenix.

Chief Marketing Officer Gaurav Misra noted that such car makers as Audi, Nissan, Mitsubishi and Lexus have developed virtual reality tours of their vehicles, but said this was the first VR showroom by a retailer.

Created with Dallas agency 900lbs of Creative, the VR showroom is designed initially for the HTC Vive headset and for customers visiting those locations. It includes virtual experiences for 15 different makes and models in the Affordable Performance category, covering 155 sports cars priced between $25,000 and $60,000.

By the end of the year, Misra said, the company expects that a downloadable app will be available for the Vive, as well as for Google Cardboard, Samsung Gear VR and Oculus Rift. The app will be updatable via online to show thumbnails and info on actual cars in stock. He added that Vroom wanted to test “a physical release first to see how customers are using it.”

Within 12 months, he said, the apps will allow virtual experiences for nearly 300 makes and models, representing 1,600 cars that include ultra sports cars, luxury and standard SUVs, pickup trucks and luxury and standard sedans.

Vroom-VR-Corvette-inventory

In the current VR experience, a user “clicks” by staring at something for 1.5 seconds. A brief stare at the car door, for instance, opens it and puts you inside. Staring in the interior brings up info on the car, and staring at the steering wheel starts the car, which then goes on a brief, self-driving road trip that automatically stops when completed.

There are sounds, but, to date, no haptic (touch) feedback, so you’ll just have to bump along the road in your imagination.

Misra acknowledged that the simulation doesn’t match an actual car ride, but suggested it provides something between a webpage and a visit to a real showroom because a would-be customer can look around and inside dozens of cars in a few minutes.

He noted that “there’s a small segment [of customers] that buys a car sight unseen” via Vroom’s online service, amounting to thousands of cars sold every month. This might help give those kinds of customers a greater comfort level, he said, although the company is “not betting the farm on this.”

On the other hand, he said, “no one regretted building a website in the late 90s.”



About The Author

Barry Levine
Barry Levine covers marketing technology for Third Door Media. Previously, he covered this space as a Senior Writer for VentureBeat, and he has written about these and other tech subjects for such publications as CMSWire and NewsFactor. He founded and led the web site/unit at PBS station Thirteen/WNET; worked as an online Senior Producer/writer for Viacom; created a successful interactive game, PLAY IT BY EAR: The First CD Game; founded and led an independent film showcase, CENTER SCREEN, based at Harvard and M.I.T.; and served over five years as a consultant to the M.I.T. Media Lab. You can find him at LinkedIn, and on Twitter at xBarryLevine.

Related Topics

Channel: Martech: ContentFacebookGoogle

Subscribe to receive daily martech news and expert insights. See terms.


We're listening.

Have something to say about this article? Share it with us on Facebook and Twitter.

Get the daily newsletter digital marketers rely on.
See terms.

ATTEND OUR EVENTS

MarTech 2021: March 16-17

MarTech 2021: Sept. 14-15

MarTech 2020: Watch On-Demand

×

Attend MarTech - Click Here


Learn More About Our MarTech Events

White Papers

  • The Six Principles of Building a Memorable Customer Experience
  • 5 Reasons Agencies Adopt Marketing Automation
  • How to Land Higher-Paying Clients: A 7-Step Framework to Grow Your Agency
  • B2B Marketing Trends Shaping 2021
  • State of Email Marketing 2021 Report
See More Whitepapers

Webinars

  • Crawl Your Way Towards Better Search Results With Dynamic Rendering
  • The AI Revolution Is Coming to Every Stage of Your Buyer’s Journey
  • The Fundamentals of Link Building for E-Commerce & Affiliate Sites in 2021
See More Webinars

Research Reports

  • Local Marketing Solutions for Multi-Location Businesses
  • Enterprise Digital Asset Management Platforms
  • Identity Resolution Platforms
  • Customer Data Platforms
  • B2B Marketing Automation Platforms
  • Call Analytics Platforms
See More Research

Register For MarTech - Free

Receive daily martech news and analysis.

Channels

  • Advertising
  • Marketing
  • Content
  • Social
  • Commerce
  • Sales
  • Analytics
  • Management
  • Home

Our Events

  • MarTech
  • SMX

Resources

  • White Papers
  • Research
  • Webinars

About

  • About Us
  • Contact
  • Privacy
  • Marketing Opportunities
  • Staff

Follow Us

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Newsletters
  • RSS

© 2021 Third Door Media, Inc. All rights reserved.